Opposites
by BroodyOTH3
Summary: Lucas and Nathan are a couple. But when Dan threatens Lucas, can Nathan reach Lucas before it's too late? MM. Lathan. Challenge response
1. Love, It Taught Me To Lie

Opposites

Chapter 1

It was 8 0'clock PM at Karen's café on a Friday night. The afternoon rush had long since died down and the only customers that remained were three blissful teenagers. Two boys, one blonde, and one brunette. And one girl.

The lights were dimmed down and the café looked as if it were preparing to close. The onlooker who was observing these details noticed when an older woman, who did not look too old, but old enough to have seen a lot in life, walked into the picture, interrupting the laughter of the three teenagers.

"Haley, instead of me paying you to chat with your friends, how about I pay you to do your job and close up the café." The woman, Karen, spoke in a light manner to the younger girl in front of her.

Karen loved having Haley work there, and she loved Haley as a daughter.

"Ahhhh, fine, I guess I'll go actually do my job." Haley stood up from the chair, and made her way around the table to the boys.

If one was just glancing at the boys, they would think that they were just really good friends. But if one dared to look much closer, they would see more.

Lucas and Nathan Scott were sitting much closer to each other than most people would call decent, and if you got even closer, you would see that their hands were intertwined under the table, a loving gesture. And it's not brotherly love.

Before leaving the table, she put a hand on each boy's shoulder and peered down at their hands, smiling. She was beyond happy that Lucas and Nathan found love. Even if it was with each other. They deserved to have the happiness that they found.

"Okay boys, I won't be gone long, please, no PDA, I'm not sure that the rest of Tree Hill is game with two half-brothers in love." Haley smiled as Nathan gave her a naughty smile, and said that they couldn't promise anything.

The onlooker moved close enough to hear what was happening after the girl left. The man was sickened at the growing closeness that the teenage boys were displaying. He couldn't see that it was anymore than brotherly kindness, but it was still sickening.

The man could sense the incredible closeness of his sons, and felt a rock settle in the pit of his stomach. This was the exact opposite of what he wanted. He wanted them to be enemies on and off the basketball court. And for his younger son to be the superior of the pair, just like it had been for sixteen years.

This little friendship, or brotherhood that they had, must be stopped for good. And if it meant sacrificing his first born, he would gladly stomp all over the boy if that was what it took. It was Nathan's team, and Nathan had a reputation, one that he did not want his bastard spawn to tear down.

Dan saw the older woman Karen reappear in the window and stopped in front of her son.

"Luke, I want you to go take out the garbage, okay?" Karen instantly saw the smiles on both boys' faces drop.

"But Mom that is Haley's job. I don't work today." Lucas began to whine as he and Nathan both gave her their signature Scott puppy dog pouts.

"Boys, I fell for that face when I was with your father, and I learned to never fall for it again. Lucas, go take out the garbage, or that small allowance I give you will become non-existent." Karen said while crossing her arms over her chest.

She knew all about the relationship between her son and his half-brother, and was growing to be okay with it. At first she was completely closed to the idea. It wasn't even that her son was gay, it was that he was in love with his brother. But as time grew on, she grew used to seeing the pair together and how happy they were with each other.

But now, she was just happy that her baby had some love in his life. Even if it was with his half-brother.

With one last stern look from Karen, she got Lucas to give in and do the menial task.

A pout covering his face, Lucas softly let go of Nathan's hand and took the large, smelly bag from his mother's hand. He began dragging his feet towards the back exit of the café.

From the outside of the café, Dan saw this as his opportunity. He was going to make his demon seed learn where he belonged once and for all.

Making his way through the back alley quickly, Dan sighed in relief as he saw that Lucas was not yet back there. He inconspicuously hid behind the dumpster, ready to attack.

Lucas pushed open the back door to his mother's café, dragging the garbage bag behind him. He just wanted to get this chore over with so he could get back to his lover.

A small rustle of sound caught Lucas's attention. He turned to the dumpster just in time to see a sudden movement.

Before he knew it, he was forcefully shoved to the ground on top of a few discarded garbage bags that hadn't made it to the dumpster yet. He was ready to get up and beat the guy's ass that had done this to him. But as soon as he saw the intimidating figure above him, all of his movements ceased.

Dan scowled down at the figure below him, who was struggling to stand up. Dan instantly threw his foot down on to the boy's chest, insuring that there was no room for him to move.

Before Lucas's escape mission had even gotten started, it was thwarted by a foot violently trapping him to the ground. The air was knocked out of his lungs, and the foot seemed to threaten to break his ribs.

Lucas looked up at his assailant fearfully, realizing quickly that this wasn't some sort of mugging. This person clearly had some sort of unfinished business with him. His eye sight finally coming into focus, Lucas saw the evil face glowing eerily under the fluorescent light.

Dan stood over him…Dan had attacked him…The question was, what did he want?

"What in the hell do you want?" Lucas spat out evilly to his father. This man did not deserve his, or anyone else's respect for the way he treated him, Nate, his mother, Deb, Haley, the mail man, the list could go on and on.

"I don't think that you are in a very good position to ask questions Lucas." Dan kept the pressure on Lucas's chest, assuring him that no escape was realistic.

"Well then what? You are either stalking me, or you're horny. Either one is damned creepy. Go home Dan, buy a fish to bother, because I'm sick of it." Lucas had to try hard to keep a straight face at his ridiculous insinuations.

But his internal laughter was quickly cut off as Dan's foot came up, and then was slammed even harder down on his chest, making sure that a nasty welt was going to appear the next few days.

"I don't think that you are in a good position to make jokes either." Dan could hear Lucas's wheezing, and was satisfied to know that he had some what cut off his son's air supply.

"So I think I'll just tell you what I want. " Dan grunted violently at Lucas.

"Stop seeing Nathan." Dan spoke, meaning that they needed to stop being friends. But those exact words meant more to Lucas.

Lucas's heart froze in his chest. Did Dan know? How did he know? He didn't want to stop seeing Nathan. The pair had just fallen in love, and some dead beat father wasn't going to stop them from seeing each other.

"I don't want Nathan around trash like you. He has a reputation to hold up, unlike you. And I don't want some bastard kid like you to ruin it." Dan stared down at Lucas, loving how the 'bastard' comment got the boy's penetrating glare to fall.

"Why should I? Nathan and I are friends, and I don't see why you should get to decide who Nathan is friends with." Lucas was growing serious. He worried immensely that Nathan would listen to his father, and destroy their relationship. That would crush Lucas.

Dan struck his foot across Lucas's face. Satisfied when he heard the grunt of pain, he continued. Lucas had learned that lesson.

"You will Lucas. Believe me. I know how much you and your mother love this little café." Dan paused to look down at Lucas, loving the frightened look.

"It would be such a shame if I just happened to pay the city to shut it down. I mean, it is your main source of income, right?" Dan pulled out his last big card, knowing that it was a low blow. He almost hated to do it. But, he would do anything to get Lucas to listen.

"You can't do that! It's illegal!" Lucas exclaimed loudly, almost to the point of yelling.

Dan panicked when he heard Lucas's loud voice. The last thing he needed was anyone knowing what he was doing to his first born son.

Reaching down, he lugged Lucas to his feet and slammed him against the unforgiving brick wall with force, and covered Lucas's mouth with his hand.

"I can do whatever the hell I want Lucas! I have more power in this town than you could ever imagine. As long as I give them money, they won't care about some stupid bastard child and his whore of a mother." Dan laughed at that comment. His amusement was heightened as Lucas struggled to hurt his for that comment. He had his full body weight pressed against the boy, leaving him no room for movement.

"Stay away from Nathan if you know what's good for you." For one last effect, Dan shoved Lucas against the wall even harder, knowing that his message had gotten across.

Nathan sat with Haley at the same table, all the while worrying about what was taking so long for Lucas to take the garbage out. Nathan voiced his concerns to Haley, who brushed them off, trying to ease Nathan.

"Oh, you know Lucas, he's such a girl about everything, and he's probably being dramatic and taking a long time on purpose." Haley laughed, hoping that she was right.

"See, I told you. I have to go lock up now." Haley pointed to the backroom door, which Lucas had just emerged from, only seconds before.

Nathan's fears were quickly put to rest when he saw his lover. But just about as quickly as they were put to rest, they rose again.

The Lucas that he saw wasn't the same Lucas as earlier that night. The one that he had been kissing earlier seemed to be gone.

This Lucas in front of him looked like the life had been sucked from his electric blue eyes. His confident shoulders had seemed to shrink. Not to mention the red welt that appeared on his left cheek.

"Luke, are you okay? What took you so long? Me and Haley were worried about you." Nathan rushed up to Lucas and grasped one of his shoulders lightly. But Lucas seemed to flinch away from his touch.

"I'm going to go home Nate." Lucas reluctantly pulled away from Nathan, not allowing his lover to peck him on the cheek.

As he pulled away, Lucas cringed when he saw the hurt and confused expression cross Nathan's face. He hated doing this, especially to Nathan, but he couldn't be selfish and sacrifice his mother's café, just so he could be happy.

"Luke, tell me what's wrong." Nathan tried to chase after his lover, extremely worried about how fast and how much Lucas's demeanor had changed.

"Leave it alone Nate." He pushed past Nathan, almost angry at him for making this more difficult than it had to be for Lucas to leave without crying.

Nathan gave up after the second time Lucas pushed him away. He didn't give up completely on their relationship, but he just figured that Lucas needed some time to deal with whatever was bothering him. He was sure that Lucas would spill it to him tomorrow. Then he would apologize, and then the pair would make up.

At least he hoped…

Lucas exited the café, hating how he had left Nathan hurt like that. He could feel his throat grow tight and it began to burn at his effort to keep his eyes from producing tears.

It completely killed him to push Nathan away. He blamed Dan, and loathed him even more now for taking him away from Nathan.

"What a smart boy. Everyone always said how intelligent you were. I think you get it from me. Now keep it this way, and your mother will get to keep her little café." Lucas heard a voice to his right side. He didn't need to look to see who it was. It was the voice that continually haunted his nightmares.

Lucas didn't bother turning to face his father. That man didn't deserve to see the tears that were streaking down his face. Instead, he just walked away, letting one choked sob exit his soul into the peaceful night.


	2. It Was A Game That I Had To Lose

I don't own anything. Answer to a challenge from Miss Meehan. All plot credits go to her. Warning: M/M relationships. If you don't like it, please don't read.

OppositesChapter 2

"_Luke, are you okay?"_

"_I'm going home Nathan."_

"_Luke, tell me what's wrong."_

"_Leave it alone Nate."_

Nathan replayed those four sentences over and over in his head, each time questioning what had gone wrong in that span of five minutes that caused such a dramatic change in his lover.

He couldn't think of anything to explain it except the extended absence that Lucas had taken in the time to take out the garbage.

In a way, Nathan was hurt about the behavior, hurt that Lucas couldn't trust him enough to confide in him about whatever had happened. He thought that they had gotten over all of the insecurities about their relationship in the beginning. Oh how he prayed that Lucas hadn't changed his mind about being his lover.

The other part of Nathan, the cruel jock part that he had been before he and Lucas had discovered their love and attraction for one another, was telling him to let his brother/lover be an emotional and indecisive little girl, and go back to hanging out with the other guys from the basketball team, and sleeping around with girls just to convince himself that he wasn't gay, that he didn't have an attraction to his brother.

As he drove through the deserted streets of Tree Hill, he tried to keep a scowl plastered onto his face. The scowl helped to keep the tears repressed behind his eyes. He continued to tell himself over and over again that he didn't need Lucas.

But no matter how much he thought it, he knew that in his heart, he was completely head over heels in love with his half-brother, and if the town wouldn't completely shun him and outcast Lucas more than he already was for being the illegitimate son of Tree Hill's Mayor, then he would shout it to the masses.

"I love Lucas Eugene Scott! And I don't give a shit what you think about it!"

Nathan smiled in his mind about that image, and immediately could picture Lucas's reaction to the public announcement of love.

First, Lucas's cheeks would blush deeply, bringing out that magenta color that accented his sandy blonde hair that he loved to run his hands through, and those striking blue crystal eyes that he loved staring into. His next reaction would be embarrassment about being called attention upon, and for using 'Eugene' so publicly.

A smile had accented Nathan' face as he thought about his boyfriend's beauty in every aspect. His temporary ignorance about the situation at hand had been nice for a few moments. But it made the hurt strike back ten fold at his emotions.

Slightly depressed, he pulled his sports car into the three car garage attached to his house, and trudged inside. His mother would kill him for slamming the door, and for neglecting to take off his shoes, but he really had no caring at that moment. His feelings were too hurt.

Walking slowly past one of the formal dens on the bottom floor of the house, he caught sight of his father.

In typical fashion, the man was lounging in his chair, a glass of scotch firmly placed in his right hand, and the remote in his left. Displayed on the television screen was a game that Nathan had won at the last moment against Bear Creek.

A tight lipped smirk was implanted on his father's place as he watched Nathan dunk the ball and hang off the rim for a few moments. Nathan lightly upturned his lips as he watched Lucas rebound the ball from the opponent and make a mesmerizing three-pointer.

Nathan really didn't want to know why his father was smirking so adamantly. He figured that Dan had just gotten home from kicking the homeless, or cutting off all funding from the no kill animal shelter.

Once inside his room, Nathan flopped onto his bed and groaned in frustration. He took out his strip of film of him and Lucas inside the photo booth at the mall. A sad smile crossed his features as he examined each picture with love in his eyes. Each goofy expression that covered his and Lucas's faces made Nathan reminisce happily.

And then there was his favorite picture. The one where his and Lucas's lips were interlocked, each of their eyes shut.

A small tear trickling down Nathan's face was wiped away viciously, as he threw the picture behind the headboard of his bed, unwilling to accept the fact that he had been hurt by someone. Never the less be hurt by the boy that he loved.

The moon light was shining down upon a lone figure as he walked through town. The figure had its head down, and looked to be in distress.

This figure was Lucas Scott.

Lucas walked on the sidewalk, illuminated by the full moon, and each individual street light.

If one were to look closer at Lucas, they would see the tears streaking continuously down his face, and the picture of anguish printed on his face.

"_Leave it alone Nate."_

Lucas couldn't stop thinking about his words, and how guilty he felt for putting his boyfriend off like that.

Normally, it would be the other way around. Nathan would do something to make himself look like an asshole, and Lucas would be the one hurt.

He'd seen the upset look on Nathan's face when he'd only been trying to help. But Lucas couldn't help it. Dan had pushed him into a corner, and an ugly one at that.

On one side, he could break Nathan's heart and the two could possibly never be together again, but his mother could keep her beloved café, which was their main source of income besides the side job that Lucas kept at his uncle's garage.

On the other side, he could be beyond selfish and keep Nathan, and betray the woman that had given up her dreams to raise him. He couldn't do that to his own mother, especially when she was his only parent.

At the same time though, he was having a very hard time hurting Nathan like this.

Internally, Lucas cursed his father for putting him in this no win situation. There was no way that he could make everyone happy, no way that he could gain approval from every angle of the situation.

Lucas sighed in relief as the entrance to his room came into sight. All he really wanted to do was go to sleep and forget about this horrific night, and dream about Nathan.

Once inside, Lucas fell face forward on his bed, not moving for over a minute. He inhaled the scent of his comforter, a mixture of him and Nathan from when the two would make out after basketball practice before his mother got home from the café.

The scent was bittersweet. He sucked air into his lungs and held it there, hoping that it would help repress the tears that were threatening at the edges of his eyes.

His conscience was laughing at him for being so weak. He should have had the guts to stand up to his…their father. He should have told the power hungry man to take his threats and shove them where they belonged. He should have told him that he would keep having relations with Nathan, and keep his mom's café.

But once again, his fear had gotten in the way, and he let that man stomp all over his life.

How long would this have to last? How long would he have to be cold to Nathan, and avoid the stolen kisses that they shared after school? How long would his father continue this torture?

"I'm sorry Nathan; I hope you don't hate me." Lucas rolled over onto his back and stared at the picture of him and Nathan at the River court. The brothers were holding each other closely, smiling brightly at Haley, who was holding the camera.

Lucas hated what he was about to do to Nathan in these next few days. He would have to ignore Nathan, and be cold to him. He knew of course that when they were in school, he could still hang around Nathan, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to take the chance. Dan Scott could be a very tricky man, and he could easily spy on them. In fact, that sounded just like something their father would do.

"I hope you can forgive me Nathan. I love you." Lucas whispered to the picture. He and Nathan weren't quite to the 'I love you' stage yet. But it was true; Lucas was in love, completely, head over heels in love with his half-brother.

Nathan arrived at school the next day, determined to find out what had happened with Lucas last night to make him so cold.

"Perfect." Nathan whispered under his breath as he saw the unruly blonde halo of hair that indicated Lucas was standing in front of his locker.

Nathan walked forward, pushing back his nervousness, and putting on his pleasant front to encourage Lucas to open up to him. He knew his boyfriend, and he knew that if he walked up to him all intimidating like he did to everyone else, that Lucas would withdraw even more than he already was.

He stopped a few inches away from Lucas, who was doing the combination on his locker. Nathan could tell that Lucas wasn't at his best that morning from the lack of hair gel in his hair, and the heavy sacks that were under his eyes.

"Hey Luke" Nathan was tempted to cup Lucas's cheek in his hand and ask him what was wrong. But considering that the whole school's population would probably kick his and Lucas's ass five times over, he kept his affections for later when he and Lucas were alone after school.

"Hey." Nathan almost flinched from the half-hearted greeting. The word didn't have that husky undertone that he loved so much about Lucas's voice. He was a tad bit discouraged, because even if it was a bit selfish, he had been expecting some sort of apology from his previous behavior.

"So…what happened last night? After you came back, you were like a completely different person." Nathan added a little chuckle to the end of his sentence, even if here was nothing humorous about what he said.

Lucas stared at his lock, which he still hadn't been able to open. It brought back fond memories of him and Nathan attempting to open his faulty lock in the mornings. He would have cracked a smile if the situation at hand wasn't so detrimental of his and Nathan's relationship.

He could see that Nathan was trying to make light out of the situation, and he appreciated that, but he couldn't help being paranoid and checking all around him to see if Dan Scott was anywhere to be found, waiting on his toes for the chance to ruin his mother's café and her dreams.

Nathan was hoping with everything he had that Lucas would turn to him and chuckle a little bit at the circumstances and tell him that everything was fine, and that his mother needed him or something. But as he watched Lucas's head darting every which way in a distracted manner, he decided to push the matter a little bit more.

"Lucas! Tell me what's wrong." Nathan whisper yelled, and grabbed above Lucas's elbow to turn him around.

Lucas was startled out of his fearful searching by Nathan turning him around forcefully. As he was facing his brother, and the penetrating look on his face, the only thing he wanted to do was throw himself into Nathan's arms and confess everything to him, and beg for forgiveness, then the pair would team up to take down their father.

Internally, Lucas knew the chances of all that happening were next to none, because there was no way that he could betray his mother and cause her to lose her café.

Taking a deep breath, Lucas began preparing for what he was about to say to Nathan. He had rehearsed what he was going to say this morning many times, trying to take the bite out of the outcome, but as he glanced up at Nathan's piercing glare, all words were lost.

Nathan was slightly hurt as he watched Lucas gaze anywhere but at him. This hadn't been what he was hoping for when he confronted Lucas this morning.

"Nate, I don't think I can do this right now. Everything is all overwhelming. And right now, I'm not sure I can handle it. I think we need a break. I hope you can understand Nathan."

Lucas felt low and cowardly as he broke things off with Nathan. He couldn't even look Nathan in the eyes.

He was very ashamed of himself as he heard Nathan's hitched breath draw in deeply due to shock.

Why couldn't he have just stood up to his father? Why did he have to be so weak? Why did he have to hurt the one that he loved so much?

"I'm sorry Nathan."

Nathan was listening to every word that Lucas said in disbelief. For a moment or two, he thought that his ears were playing cruel tricks on him. But as he realized that that wasn't the case, he moved on to the thought of Lucas playing cruel tricks on him.

His mind was in a coma of shock as he continued listening to the excuses that Lucas was giving out to back out of the relationship.

Suddenly, a deep strike of hurt surged through his body, making course all the way through to his heart. His heart shattered on contact.

Of all the ways that Nathan ever pictured this relationship ending, this wasn't what he expected. He'd always pictured that he would eventually do something to be an asshole, and Lucas end up the one being hurt. He would never hurt Lucas purposely, but he still never thought that Lucas would hurt him like this.

"I'm sorry Nathan."

Nathan drew the line at that sentence. He didn't need or want Lucas's sorry ass apologies.

"I don't need your excuses or apologies Lucas." Nathan blurted out. Being cold and hurtful back to Lucas was the only way that he could disguise his beyond hurt feelings.

As Nathan said those words, he watched Lucas's shoulders and head droop even more. Nathan knew after a few months of being involved with Lucas that it was a tell tale sign that the words hurt him. He hated hurting Lucas, but at this moment, it was his only alternative to falling to his knees and begging his lover to reconsider.

"I know Nathan, and I just want you to know…." Nathan heard the desperate pleading in Lucas's voice and was beginning to grow angry. Lucas had no right to be desperate, he was the one that was hurting Nathan.

"Why Lucas?" Nathan asked, feeling the words flow through his gritted teeth.

Lucas sighed sadly. He still couldn't look Nathan in the eyes. Party because he didn't want to see Nathan's crushed eyes, and because he didn't want Nathan to see his tears.

"I…I…want you to understand that I don't want to hurt you." Lucas fiddled with his lock, trying to find a decent excuse that wouldn't make him sound like a total asshole, and hurt Nathan.

"Whatever Lucas, I don't feel like dealing with your mood swings right now. Call me when you've gotten over it." Nathan walked away from Lucas, bumping shoulders with him to emphasize his hurt and anger.

Angrily, he stalked over to the other side of the hallway where the rest of the basketball team resided. His tough front was planted firmly to every part of his body from his posture to his face.

"Hey Nate, what's wrong with the bastard spawn over there, he looks like he's about to cry." Tim laughed with the other members of the team.

Normally, if he hadn't just been broken up with, he would have kicked Tim's ass sideways for saying that comment. But as he looked back over at Lucas, who was holding the shoulder that had been bumped, just like Tim said 'about to cry', Nathan felt no pity, because he too, was heart broken.

"Nothing, I just said something about his daddy, and his eyes got watery. I don't what we should have expected from someone who was raised by only his mommy."

Nathan hated insulting Karen like that, and he knew that Lucas detested when people talked about his father, but he couldn't help making sure that Lucas could hear every word.

Lucas felt his heart fall from his chest, all the way to the bottom of his stomach and splinter on contact as he heard insults spilling from his teammates' mouths and Nathan laugh along with them.

He finally met Nathan's gaze, and what he saw made his heart deconstruct even more. He could see the vulnerability and the hurt. But he could also see the anger emanating from those dreamy blue eyes.

From across the hall, Nathan could see Lucas's crushed eyes. He had to push the guilt back in his heart as he broke Lucas's stare.

Lucas continued staring at his ex-lover even after he broke off their connection. He couldn't believe that he had let Dan dig this far into his life and his emotions.

He felt just as bad as his father ad he dropped his sight to the floor.

"I'm sorry Nathan, I love you."


	3. I'm Cold As Cold As Cold Can Be

Answer to "Opposites" Challenge from Miss Meehan. All plot credits to Miss Meehan.

Warning: Homosexual relations, if this subject offends you, please do not read.

I don't own anything.

Opposites

Chapter 3

...Ring...Ring...Ring...Ring...

Haley James sighed in exasperation as the lunch bell rang and all of the other students behind her raced out of the room in a pathetic race to be first in the lunch line.

Of course she was in no hurry to get to lunch as she piled all of her books into her messenger bag. During this period of school on this day, she had another one of her many tutoring sessions.

She really appreciated that all of the teachers thought so high of her to suggest her teaching services to many of the other students, but they didn't really understand how much that all of the sessions were wearing on her.

Three days a week she had her lunch hour taken up, four days a week she had an hour before school in the library, and another four days, she had an hour after school.

Now don't get her wrong, she lives for the moments when her peers' faces light up once they understand something, and as the red marks on their tests become less ans less, but she had to have her own time too. She needed her time to spend alone, to spend with Lucas and Nathan, who were practically attatched at the hip, and she also needed plenty of time to do her mountains of homework.

Haley hefted her heavy bag towards the tutoring center to check her schedule. She hoped that this session wasn't going to be another jock that would just try to bribe her to do the work. It was those hopeless cases that made some tutoring sessions unbearable. If they didn't want to learn, then she didn't want to waste her valuable time.

Running her finger over the chart to her name and time, she let a grin flitter across her face.

"Student - Nathan Scott

Tutor - Haley James

Time- 12:15 - 1:15"

She marked on the dry erase board with a green marker that signified that the session had been noticed. And now all she had to do was wait for Nathan.

Haley knew that this hour would entail Nathan gleaming and ranting about how he couldn't believe that things were working out with Lucas. Each week she could hear Nathan getting more optimistic about the incestuous relationship that he and Lucas were involved in.

And each week that he and Lucas became happier, it made her happier too. She had spent so many years with an unhappy Lucas that wondered what he did that his father and brother not only didn't love him, but also hated him.

The relationship with Nathan seemed to calm all of Lucas's tumultuous feelings about his father, and to bring out the goofy smile that he had much more often.

And Nathan, he seemed to drop his a lot of his tough guy act so much when he was around her and Lucas. All of his asinine games and comments became playful jabs and sweet nothings whispered to Lucas. Of course he was still somewhat of a clueless oaf sometimes as most guys are, but it was still an improvement to the copious 'bastard' comments and the trying to get Lucas off of the team.

A knock on the open door to the tutor center snapped Haley out of her optimistic thoughts about her newly happy best friend, and her new friend that was making him happy.

Nathan appeared in the door way. He was walking into the center with his backpack slung over his shoulder and not looking nearly as happy as he usually did.

"Hey Nate, what's up? Did you and Luke have a good time after I left?" She asked as he yanked out one of the wooden chairs next to her and throw his bag on the chair.

She didn't ask yet about what was wrong with him because she didn't want to jump to conclusions around Nathan. She would wait until he told her about whether it was a bad day, or if it was Lucas having trouble with his trust and abandonment issues again.

"Can we not talk about him right now. I have something to do with the guys after lunch so I kind of want to get this over with." Nathan's voice was hostile as he yanked out his english book and tossed it on the table.

Nathan didn't care how hostile that he was being with Haley at the moment, even if she wasn't the guilty party. He was just too angry and hurt at what Lucas had done that he didn't have much patience for Haley's mediation of the issue.

Haley sat at the table, shocked at the abrupt change in Nathan from the previous night where he had been a nice guy, caring to Lucas, and kind to her.

This Nathan seemed to be the one from about a month and a half ago. This was the one that kidnapped Lucas and threw him in the lake, and the one that had stolen Lucas's clothes. That prank seemed much more kinky now than it did before they knew about the relationship.

"Um sure, okay. We'll take up from that practice quiz on page 437 in your english book." Haley didn't push the issue yet in fear of detonating Nathan's fearsome Scott temper. He would come around eventually.

She hoped...

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Lunch time...

Lucas never thought that after he met Haley that this one hour of his day would be the lonliest. The last time he had felt this lonely was back in the first grade when he would sit alone at his desk eating his lunch and watching the other kids swap foods.

He remembered when he had tried to swap his chips once. His mother had packed the salt and vinegar ones that he didn't like and he saw one of the other kids with his favorite sour cream and onion. So he gathered up all the courage that a shy six year-old could have and he asked to trade the other kid, who had just happened to be his half-brother.

But apparently, the hatred from half-brother to half-brother went all the way back to the first grade.

_"No! I don't want to trade YOU! My daddy doesn't like you, and I don't like you too."_

Lucas felt so pathetic sitting at his lunch table alone, brooding about trauma that dated over a decade ago. These were the times that he cursed the immature fools that had taken advantage of off-campus lunch by deciding not to come back to school, succeeding in getting that privledge taken away.

But Lucas knew that his lonliness was his fault. He was the one that couldn't grow a back bone enough to stand up to his father. He was the one that folded and did everything that that man wanted him to do because secretly he still longed for a small bit of acceptance from him.

Maybe that was his downfall. He could be happy and have everything he ever imagined, but if his father walked up to him and said that he'd be proud if he threw everything in the sewer, he knew in his head that he probably would.

Grinning bitterly, Lucas thought about how much he claimed to despise the man, but did so much thinking about him.

Lucas knew that his logic made perfect sense in his head. But he wasn't so sure about how Nathan would take hearing it. He knew all about trying to please Dan, but it wasn't the same way that Lucas was trying to please him.

Nathan wouldn't understand how much small acknowledgements meant to Lucas, and how he had unconsciously tried to do everything to please him.

The question was now, whether he had the guts to go behind everything that his father asked him and recieve the happiness back.

But what about the happiness that he wanted from his father's acceptance?

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Lucas sprinted and sprinted from line to line on the polished wood basketball court. He could feel his stamina wearing down faster than usual as Whitey's voice penetrated his ears, mixing with the sounds of soles squeaking against the floor.

Once again, Nathan raced by him, not seeming nearly as fazed about the conditioning as Lucas and the rest of the team did. And of course, this, along with everything else today, reminded him something about Nathan.

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_Breathe in through your nose...out through your mouth..._

_Lucas tried to keep this rhythm as he struggled to keep up with his team mates sprints. He hadn't expected this type of conditioning when he joined the team. He thought that he was in good shape, but clearly he was wrong as yet another one of his team mates rushed past him in the race against the clock. _

_Of course that wasn't the only thing keeping his mind off the task of running. The other object was at the front of the pack of sweaty boys._

_But the one sweaty boy he was concentrated on was the one that he was extremely attracted to, and it wasn't in a friendly way..._

_Nathan Scott and him had recently had a liaison in the boy's bathroom after Lucas was getting ready to leave after he took his late shower, and things had changed after that moment of passion and pure insanity. _

_Those pouty lips..._

_Those toned abs..._

_That soft hair..._

_His train of thought was once again broken off by a flash of brunette hair that slowed down beside him and looked at him while trying to look inconspicuous about slowing down considerably._

_"Keep going Luke, we're almost done." Nathan knew that he was risking major punishment from Coach Whitey by slowing his pace so much, but he couldn't just sit back and watch Lucas suffer so much time after time that he couldn't make the demanding time that the sprints required. _

_"I can't do this Nathan, I'm tired and I can't keep this up." Secretly, Lucas's heart was tight with excitement that Nathan had stopped to pay special attention to him. But he couldn't show it, he was too exhausted, and he didn't want to risk any further hazing from the team if they got any ideas._

_"Yes you can Lucas, I know you can. Do it for me?" Nathan gave him the sweetest smile he could as he continued to run by the struggling Lucas. _

_"SCOTTS! Stop yacking and keep running. Nathan, maybe if you carried your brother on your back, he could actually make the time limit!" Whitey Durham yelled from the sidelines, triggering laughter and remarks from the other boys as they heaved and panted._

_Lucas gave Nathan a little grin as he pumped his legs a little bit harder to quicken the pace and attempt to keep up with his brother and lover._

_-----------------------------_

Haley walked through the nearly empty halls of Tree Hill High School. Just finished with her last tutoring session of the day, she was glad for the day to be over and to be able to spend time with her best friend once he finished with his basketball practice.

As she walked in to the gym with her bag slung over her shoulder, she was met with the sight of fifteen boys running from line to line, breathing hard and obviously exhausted. Sitting down, she spotted her two favorite boys.

Lucas was noticably struggling more than usual, he just seemed to have lost all of his passion and his will to keep up and please the coach.

And Nathan, who just looked angry. He seemed even more hostile and on edge than he did this morning. And even though he seemed angry, he looked more determined than ever to prove himself.

She continued watching the sprints, worrying about the sudden change in demeanor. A disturbance in the pattern of the running boys caught her eye.

Nathan looked to purposely roughly bump shoulders with an already unbalanced Lucas. The action sent Lucas sprawling to the floor. All of the sudden noise sparked the attention and then laughter of his team mates.

"L. Scott! Get your ass up and keep running!" Looking disoriented and discouraged, Lucas stood up from his position on the floor and continued running.

Haley looked on, shocked at how much the relationship between these two had changed in such a short period of time. The previous night they had been inseperable, holding hands and whispering sweet nothings in each other's ears. Now it seemed like they had gone back in time to right when Lucas joined the team.

All of the hazing and the hostility from the team and especially Nathan had returned. She was extremely worried about her best friend and what had happened since last night to make his lover change personalities so much.

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Lucas exited the gym without even bothering to shower off. He knew that he probably smelled pretty bad, but he couldn't risk being around so many nude guys with Nathan knowing about his sexuality. It was a really good chance that his half-brother would spill the secret of his sexuality. And he had heard stories about how cruel boys could be when they found out that someone was a homosexual.

As he walked through the empty hallway of the school with his head down, his thoughts raced at the events of the past day. Actually, it hadn't even been a day yet since Dan jumped him in an alley way and threatened his mother's cafe if he didn't keep his distance from Nathan.

The push to the ground that Nathan had given him was what had affected him the most though. It broke so many promises that they had made each other at the start of their relationship.

_"I'm sorry Luke, I'd never hurt you like that again."_

Of course Lucas wasn't saying that he was completely innocent in the promise breaking world. He had hurt Nathan in what was suspected to be uncertainties, and the worst, he had deliberately lied to him. The pair had said that they would confide in each other in everything, and Lucas had shattered that promise.

_"We tell each other everything. No matter how bad it is, we confide in each other. Do you promise Luke? _

_"Of course I do Nathan. I promise." The promise between the couple was sealed with a kiss._

But what could he do? It was probably too late to go to Nathan and tell him of the situation. And with his luck, Nathan, in his cloud of hurt, probably wouldn't believe him. He couldn't really say that he blamed him either.

"Lucas! Wait up!" Behind him, Lucas heard the annoyingly familiar voice of his best friend. He wasn't in the mood for any eccentric activities like stealing from the lost and found, or going to any old movies, so he kept walking, hoping that she would get the hint that he wasn't in the best mood.

"LUCAS EUGENE SCOTT! Do not ignore me!"

Oh, the middle name. Ouch. Lucas decided to obey her call just to not cause a scene in the hallway. Stopping, he turned around, expecting to see a silly smile on his best friend's face from the fact that she had gotten him to stop. But instead he saw a completely serious expression on her face. She wasn't here to joke around, this was business.

"Lucas, what happened between you and Nathan?" Haley came out directly and asked the question. She didn't want to deal with any pleasantried when she could see how much the conflict, whatever it was, between Lucas and Nathan was affecting them both.

Lucas stood in silence, secretly wanting to turn away from this confrontation and run home, but he knew that Haley would only make things worse if he decided to take the cowards way out.

"What are you talking about Haley?" He knew that his question was very unconvincing and probably gave away any leverage that he had in the conversation, but it was really the only thing that he could force out of his mouth.

"Do not play clueless with me Lucas. I know that something is going on between you two and I know that it's not good. Please tell me what's wrong." Haley pleaded with her best friend. She was desperate in this attempt to know what was wrong. She hated when either brother was in pain, and right now, they both seemed to be in an abundance of it.

"Please Haley, leave it alone" Lucas began looking anywhere but at Haley. She knew him too well. She could read his eyes and his body language. But Lucas didn't want her too, he wanted to deal with this by himself. He dug himself into this hole, and he should have to dig himself out of it.

"No Lucas. I know you and I can tell that something is wrong with you and Nathan. Please Lucas, tell me what's wrong." Haley grabbed both of Lucas's forearms in emphasis, hoping that he would give in. And as she looked up into his eyes, and saw them watering up, she knew that she had broken him.

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Thanks for reading. It wasn't my best writing, but I'm working on it. There are two more chapters left in this story and there will be a happy ending.

Please review.


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